Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — Saudi Arabia's General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) has released its 2024 Health Care Statistics Bulletin.

According to the report, 100% of Saudis enjoyed coverage for their basic health expenses in 2024, and the coverage rate for all residents of Saudi Arabia was 95.9%. The average number of visits by residents of Saudi Arabia to the healthcare provider during the past 12 months was 1.9, the report said.

The report showed that 94.8% of Saudi Arabia’s adult population (aged 15 years and above) have coverage for basic health care expenses, whether this coverage is government health coverage or private insurance.

It also showed that 96.1% of children aged (under 15 years) have coverage for basic health care expenses, whether by the government health program or private insurance.

The bulletin indicated that the rate of visits (to a health care provider) in the past 12 months among Saudi Arabia’s adult population (15 years and above) was 1.9. It was higher among Saudis with 2.6 visits, while it was 1.2 among non-Saudis.

It was also higher among females with 2.5 visits, while it was 1.6 among males.

The report showed that 13.1% of the population received medical advice from a dentist during the past 12 months, and the percentage was higher among females, reaching 17.2%, while among males it reached 10.7%.

It also showed that 55.6% of the population rated their last visit to the dentist as excellent, while 30.4% rated their visit experience as good.

The bulletin showed that 24.3% of adults (15 years and older) accessed their electronic medical record online, 20.5% used the Internet to obtain health-related information (e.g.: injury, disease, nutrition, health improvement, etc.), and 4.5% used the teleconsultation service to consult with a healthcare provider.

The Health Care Statistics Bulletin is a valuable source for understanding healthcare indicators for Saudi Arabia’s adult and child population, based on the results of the National Health Survey and the Women and Child Health Survey for 2024, in addition to population estimates provided by the General Authority for Statistics for the year.